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1892: Hoffnungskirche,
Oberweißbach, Germany

Mystery Worshipper:
Portola.The church:
Hoffnungskirche,
Oberweißbach, Germany.Denomination:Evangelische Kirche
in Mitteldeutschland (Evangelical Church in Middle Germany).The building:
The Hoffnungskirche (Hope Church) of Oberweißbach is labeled
the largest village church of Thuringia. It was dedicated in
1776 and is called the cathedral of southern Thuringia. There
is room for 2000 worshippers, including seating on three balconies.
The pulpit is considered the largest in Europe; 12 preachers
could stand together on this pulpit. A constant challenge facing
the congregation of Oberweißbach is the on-going restoration
of the Hoffnungskirche. During Communist times there were no
funds to keep the church intact. At one time the building was
in danger of collapsing. Various renovations, costing €3.6,
have stabilised the church and restored much of its beauty.
But there is still much to be done, when new funding and further
contributions become available.The church:
They are affiliated with churches of three neighbouring villages:
Cursdorf, Deesbach and Lichtenhain. The Hoffnungskirche has
groups for seniors, women and children; there are also a mother
and child group, regular choir rehearsals,and confirmation instruction.
One of the previous churches was destroyed with the church records
during the Thirty Years War, so that it is no longer documented
how old the Christian community of this village is.The neighbourhood:
Oberweißbach is a village sitting high up on a steep slope of
the mountainous Thuringian Forest, a popular vacation and winter
sport area in the middle of Germany. The drive up to this church
from the valley through a fir forest was steep and curvy. On
this Sunday the forest was covered heavily with fresh snow and
the temperature was subfreezing. The village was a center for
the fabrication of medicinal curatives in the 18th century,
which brought wealth to the village and accounts for the size
and the rich decorations of the church. The most famous son
of Oberweißbach is Friedrich Fröbel (1782-1852), who founded
the first kindergarten and who was baptised in this church.The cast:
The service was lead by Frau Pastorin Gabriele Bollmann. The
organist was Herr Thomas Brandt.The date & time:
10 January 2010, 10.00am.

What was the name of the service?Gottesdienst (Service of God).

How full was the building?
The service took place in the church hall, which is a back room
of the church; it has an altar area and small organ and seats
about 50 or 60 people. Eleven people were present (not counting
pastor and organist). The large church is not used in the winter
(except on Christmas Eve) because it is too cold, and the cost
of heating would be prohibitive.

Did anyone welcome you personally?
We were greeted with a handshake and a friendly "Good morning!"
by the person handing out the hymnbooks. A woman who seated
herself next to us also greeted us with polite friendliness.

Was your pew comfortable?
The chairs were comfortable.

How would you describe the pre-service
atmosphere?
The pre-service atmosphere was lively and cheerful, as congregational members greeted one another.

What were the exact opening words of the
service?
The opening words, translated into idiomatic English: "Greetings
to you as we worship together on this first Sunday after Epiphany."

What books did the congregation use during the
service?
The Evangelical Hymnbook for Bavaria and Thuringia.

What musical instruments were played?
Organ.

Did anything distract you?
A pleasant one: a small girl sitting in front of us kept turning
around again and again to stare at Frau Portola. Apparently,
this girl found something fascinating about her, because she
moved her eyes over my wife from head to foot, as though she
were trying to memorise what she was seeing.

Was the worship stiff-upper-lip,
happy clappy, or what?
The service was liturgical but not stiff, due to the cheerful
manner of the pastor leading the service. But it was somewhat
unpredictable. There were moments when hymn verses were sung
unexpectedly, without prelude, as part of the order of service.
By the time I figured out what was going on and had opened the
hymn book to the appropriate place, it was too late really to
participate. Holy communion was not celebrated  see below.

Exactly how long was the
sermon?
13 minutes.

On a scale of 1-10, how good was the preacher?
7  The pastor had a natural, agreeable style of speaking. At times she was spontaneous and spoke from the heart about her own faith and impressions in an appropriate way. She addressed the congregation as though she were speaking to friends or family members. Her message was pure gospel and reflected Lutheran theology.

In a nutshell, what was the sermon
about?
The theme of the sermon was vernünftige Gottesdienst
(reasonable service of God), a term taken from the sermon text
of Romans 12:1–6 (serve God in proportion to your gifts). The
basis for all service for God is God himself, who serves us
(which is also Gottesdienst). He is like the sun, which
shines on good and bad. He always affirms us regardless of weaknesses.
We are called upon to do activities that radiate the warmth
we receive from him. Gottesdienst as service to God
can consist of everyday activities: caring for someone who is
old, raising a child, clearing the sidewalk of snow, baking
a cake or making coffee, filling out a statistic sheet, singing
in the choir. Service to God is not limited to church people.
Reasonable service means we do what we can, not trying to do
too much, but accepting our limitations and remaining within
the framework of God's love to us.

Which part of the service was like being in
heaven?
The enormous snow outside, as seen through the church windows,
gave this service a heavenly dimension. To be in this village
service on this cold morning in this brightly lit room with
people who sang enthusiastically and obviously enjoyed celebrating
a worship service was heavenly.

And which part was like being in... er... the other place?
Something that was missing was holy communion. I have attended
at least 20 worship services in various East German churches
and only once was holy communion celebrated – and that celebration
was not part of the service but was an appendage after the service.
One East German church I encountered offers communion only four
times a year. This infrequency of the altar sacrament means
that something fundamental is missing: Christian worship without
the Lord's Supper is truncated, because it does not involve
the whole person and remains unculminated. There is no holy
communion in "the other place."

What happened when you hung around after the service looking lost?
I hung around after the service, but no one came up to me, which
I was not expecting anyway. The few people present were understandably
involved with getting up-to-date with one another. The pastor
greeted us cordially as we left, and after hanging around in
the large church we became engaged in conversation with a retired
pastor.

How would you describe the after-service
coffee?
No after-service coffee; it is not a tradition in Germany.

How would you feel about making this church your regular (where 10 = ecstatic, 0 = terminal)?
6  I'm sure that this congregation consists of dedicated
and friendly people who deserve respect for carrying Christianity
through the Communist regime and keeping the church building
from becoming dilapidated. There have been impressive renovations
in difficult circumstances. But being a city person, I don't
think I could feel completely comfortable in a village. And
I would prefer a congregation that offers communion more regularly.
The church newsletter, which lists worship services in this
area, indicates infrequent communion.

Did the service make you
feel glad to be a Christian?
Yes. It was delightful to be in a remote mountain village on
a subfreezing morning and experiencing the same gospel that
is proclaimed worldwide.

What one thing will you
remember about all this in seven days' time?
Going out of the church into the quiet, snow-bound village, seeing the steep flanks of the white-clad forest, and despite below-freezing temperatures feeling the warm glow of this Christian fellowship.

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